DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2017/328)

KEECH & ASSOCIATES PTY LTD T/AS KEECH FENCING AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016-2018

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 13 FEBRUARY 2017

Application for approval of the Keech & Associates Pty Ltd T/As Keech Fencing and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Keech & Associates Pty Ltd T/As Keech Fencing and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 20 February 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2018.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter involved an application for approval of an enterprise agreement between Keech & Associates Pty Ltd, trading as Keech Fencing, and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (Victorian Construction and General Division). The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission, which has the authority to approve such agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on whether the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the legal requirements for approval, particularly concerning the provisions related to employee entitlements and the union's bargaining rights.

The legal issues that the Fair Work Commission was required to decide included whether the agreement met the formal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act, such as being in writing and being certified as a bargain genuinely reached by the parties. Additionally, the Commission needed to assess if the agreement contained any provisions that were contrary to public policy or that breached any minimum standards set by the Act. A critical aspect of the decision was determining whether the agreement appropriately balanced the rights and interests of both the employer and the employees, and whether it complied with any relevant industrial laws and regulations.

In its reasoning, the Commission carefully examined the contents of the enterprise agreement and found that it met all the formal requirements for approval. The agreement was duly certified and was a genuine outcome of negotiations between the parties. The Commission also concluded that the agreement did not contain any provisions that were contrary to public policy or that breached the minimum standards set by the Act. After considering the balance of rights and interests of both the employer and the employees, the Commission determined that the agreement was fair and appropriate. Consequently, the Fair Work Commission approved the Keech & Associates Pty Ltd T/As Keech Fencing and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2018.

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established